Sunday 10 January 2010 09.23 EST
First published on Sunday 10 January 2010 09.23 EST

Hopes of a respite from Britain's prolonged spell of freezing weather rose today as the Met Office downgraded its severe weather warnings of more heavy snow.

Further disruptive snowfall across eastern and south-eastern England was now less likely, forecasters said.

However, there was still a "moderate risk of a severe weather event" affecting parts of Wales, north east and south-east England, with 1-2cm of snow on lower ground and up to 8cm on east-facing slopes.

There was also good news for councils facing a grit shortage due to the prolonged cold snap, as a fleet of lorries began delivering 12,000 extra tonnes of de-icing salt made available by chemicals firm Ineos.

The first convoy of 50 trucks left the firm's depot in Runcorn, Cheshire, this morning with another 50 scheduled to deliver more supplies tomorrow.

The emergency salt, originally destined for Germany, is destined for some of the country's worst-hit areas, including Pembrokeshire in Wales, East Yorkshire, Fife, Gloucestershire, Bradford and Sheffield.

Lord Adonis, the transport secretary, defended the rationing of grit supplies, saying it would help keep major roads open.

Emergency measures have been put in place to reduce the 60,000 tonnes used each day by councils across the country, with local authorities forced to cut their use of grit salt by a quarter. The Highways Agency has decided not to grit the hard shoulder of motorways.

Adonis told Sky News: "The forecasts are for nine consecutive nights of sub-zero temperatures coming up. That being the case, we would have been acting irresponsibly and local councils would have been acting irresponsibly if they did not plan properly.

"By taking this step together we will ensure those supplies of grit we have got will continue, and we will be able to keep most of the major roads open."

Stocks of grit are being monitored closely, with the national situation to be reassessed on Tuesday.

The shadow local government secretary, Caroline Spelman, called the grit measures "an admission of utter failure". "The lessons of last February's extreme weather have not been learnt," she said. "The government has failed to build up a strategic Highways Agency reserve and Labour ministers have sat on their hands instead of putting measures in place to safeguard grit supplies. The government appears to be rapidly losing control of the situation."

Earlier, the army was put on standby in Kent to help police and rescue authorities. People in the area have been advised not to travel unless necessary.

The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, in Canterbury, supplied soldiers and rescue vehicles to help with road clearing operations yesterday, while the 36 Engineer Regiment, based in Maidstone, delivered meals-on-wheels services.

The temperature dipped to -16C (3F) in the Scottish Highlands overnight, but was less severe elsewhere. London was just above freezing; Manchester a shade below and Cardiff -2C.

The National Grid today lifted its third gas supply warning in a week after more supplies arrived.

Train passengers experienced delays and cancellations on some routes, but the Association of Train Operating Companies said most operators had returned to a fuller service this weekend, with many running their normal weekend timetables. Eurostar was running about two-thirds of its normal service from London, a spokeswoman said.

The death toll from weather-related incidents has risen to 26. The latest victim was a 42-year-old woman in Newcastle, who was found dead in the snow yesterday. Meanwhile, police in South Yorkshire confirmed a 90-year-old woman near Barnsley had frozen to death in her garden.

Sporting fixtures continued to be badly affected, with today's Premier League football matches between Liverpool and Tottenham and West Ham and Wolves cancelled.

Charities have called for increased cold weather fuel payments to pensioners to prevent the number of cold weather deaths soaring.